Galesburg city workers have all but removed the founder’s fountain which once stood in Central Park. The fountain was removed earlier this week to make way for a 15-foot-tall bronze statue of Carl Sandburg, being installed by the Galesburg Public Arts Commission.
Questions have been raised, however, in regard to why the fountain needed to be removed for the statue to stand. According to GPAC President Chuck Bednar, the base of statue would have encroached upon where the fountain stood. Bednar tells WGIL, that’s only under the current design however.
“We were hoping to adapt the existing fountain into the new memorial structure,” says Bednar. “However, we had a meeting a couple years ago and we looked at it and it was in such deteriorated condition that the city felt that it was in the best interest that we go ahead and remove it.
Bednar clarified that now the statue will be placed in the center of the park, facing slightly northeast with a 20 foot ring, and a 12 foot walkway surrounding it. He says he expects the statue will be standing by September, when the base of the foundation is expected to be complete as well.
GPAC reportedly needs to raise $35,000 to $40,000 more for the project to be completed. Bednar says the remaining funds will be used for inscription panels.
